Chris Jericho: Encyclopedia II - Chris Jericho - World Wrestling Entertainment

Chris Jericho - World Wrestling Entertainment

Jericho alternated between WCW and a number of Japanese tours before his debut with the World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment). The build-up to Jericho's arrival was a clock labeled "countdown to the new millennium", counting down over the weeks prior to his arrival. On the home video Break the Walls Down, Jericho states he was inspired to do this as his entrance when he saw a similar clock in a post office. Vince McMahon gave him the green light to use it as his intro to the WWF. The clock finally ran down on August 9, 1999 in Chicago, Illinois while The Rock was in the ring doing a promo. Jericho, a heel, entered the arena and proclaimed himself "Y2J". The Rock proceeded to verbally mock him for his interruption.

Chris Jericho - Intercontinental Champion

On December 12, 1999 Jericho won his first WWF Title, the Intercontinental Championship, from Chyna.

This feud with Chyna lasted for many months including a controversial decision in which two separate referees declared each one of them the winner of a match for the title on January 3, 2000. As a result, they became co-owners of the title until Jericho attained sole ownership at the Royal Rumble in January 2000. He ended up dropping the title to Kurt Angle on February 27 at No Way Out.

On April 2, 2000 Jericho participated in his very first WrestleMania in a Triple Threat match against Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle with unique rules. Angle entered the match-up as both the WWF European and WWF Intercontinental champion. The first man to score a pinfall or submission would be declared Intercontinental Champion. The second man to score a pinfall or submission would be declared European Champion. Jericho was first pinned by Benoit and would pin Benoit later on in the match, making Jericho the new European Champion. Jericho, would lose the title the next day to Eddie Guerrero on RAW.

On the April 17, 2000 edition of RAW, Chris Jericho upset Triple H in a WWF Championship match. Referee Earl Hebner had made a fast count when Jericho pinned HHH, leading Vince McMahon to force the referee to reverse the decision and return the title to Triple H. Jericho's win was stricken from the record.

After the controversial decision, Jericho went on to feud with Chris Benoit. On the May 4, 2000 edition of SmackDown! Jericho defeated Benoit to become WWF Intercontinental Champion for the second time, but lost the title back to Benoit four days later on Raw.

At the 2001 Royal Rumble, Jericho defeated Benoit in a ladder match to win the Intercontinental Title for a third time.

At WrestleMania X-Seven, he successfully defended his title in a match against William Regal, only to lose it four days later to Triple H.

In May at Judgment Day, Jericho and Benoit won a "Tag Team Turmoil" match, earning a shot Stone Cold Steve Austin and Triple H for their WWF Tag Team Championship on RAW the next night. Benoit and Jericho won the match and Jericho became WWF Tag Team Champion for the first time. The duo would lose the titles one month later to the Dudley Boyz on June 19, 2001.

Chris Jericho - Undisputed Champion

In the following months, Jericho would become a major force in the "Invasion" storyline in which WCW and ECW joined forces to overtake the WWF. Jericho would remain on the side of the WWF and retain his status as a face. However, slowly signs of a heel turn became obvious as Jericho would begin to show jealousy toward fellow WWF member, The Rock. Jericho would defeat The Rock for the Rock's WCW World Heavyweight Championship. One night later, the two put their differences aside and won the WWF Tag Team titles from the Alliance's Dudley Boyz. After they lost the titles to Test and Booker T, they continued their feud as The Rock regained the WCW Heavyweight Championship from Jericho. At Survivor Series, Jericho would almost cost the Rock and the WWF victory in their Elimination matchup.

On December 9, 2001, at Vengeance, Chris Jericho defeated both The Rock, for his WCW Heavyweight Championship, and Stone Cold Steve Austin, for his WWF Heavyweight Championship, on the same night to become the first-ever WWF Undisputed Champion. This is considered a tremendous accolade and is arguably Chris Jericho's greatest accomplishment. He not only united the WCW and WWF title, but did so against two men who were arguably the best wrestlers of that period on the same night. He fought both men in separate occasions and retained his title at the next two pay-per-views, Royal Rumble (vs. The Rock) and No Way Out (vs. Stone Cold).

Jericho dropped the title to Triple H in the main event of WrestleMania X8. After this loss Jericho became a member of the SmackDown! roster and continued his feud with Triple H. The rivalry culminated at Judgment Day when Triple H defeated Jericho in a Hell in a Cell match.

Chris Jericho - Jericho and Christian

Shortly thereafter, Jericho was drafted back to RAW, where he teamed with Christian to capture the tag team titles from the Hurricane and Kane on October 14, 2002.

At the 2002 Survivor Series, Jericho participated in the very first Elimination Chamber match along with Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Booker T, Rob Van Dam and Kane for the World Heavyweight Championship.

At Armageddon on December 15, Jericho and Christian lost the Tag Team Championship to Booker T and Goldust in a fatal four way match also involving the Dudley Boyz and Lance Storm and William Regal.

Jericho started a rivalry with Shawn Michaels in 2003. On January 13, Jericho won an over-the-top-rope challenge against Kane, Rob Van Dam and Batista to select his entry number for the Royal Rumble, choosing number two in order to start the match with Michaels, who had already been named number one. At the Rumble, which took place in Boston at the Fleetcenter, Jericho eliminated Michaels after bloodying him with a steel chair, before being eliminated by Test after interference by Michaels. On March 30, at WrestleMania XIX, the two faced off with Michaels coming out the victor.

On October 27, Jericho defeated Rob Van Dam by submission to the Walls of Jericho in order to capture the Intercontinental Championship but RAW Co-General Manager, Stone Cold Steve Austin, ordered an immediate rematch in a cage, which was won by Van Dam.

Chris Jericho - Trish Stratus

Beginning around this time, Jericho developed a crush on Trish Stratus. Eventually, on the November 10, 2003 edition of Monday Night Raw, Jericho finally got a date with Trish. Eventually, it was revealed that Jericho and Christian had made a bet for one canadian dollar to see which one of them could sleep with a chosen diva first. Jericho's diva was Trish while Christian's diva was Lita.

At Armageddon, Jericho and Christian defeated Lita and Trish in a "Battle of the Sexes" match. The next night, a rematch was scheduled but was stopped by Chris Jericho. As a result, he was forced to face Kane and was attacked by Christian later that night.

On January 5, Jericho and Christian reunited and Jericho attempted to apologize to Trish. One week later, Jericho ran in to make the save as Trish was being assaulted by Jazz but was attacked himself by Jazz's stable-mate Mark Henry. Later that night, Christian convinced Jericho that he was wasting his time with Trish. Jericho conceded, not knowing that Trish was looking for him.

On January 26, Trish was scheduled to face Kane in a match-up. However, Chris Jericho, having one and only one favor that he could ask of General Manager Eric Bischoff after helping Bischoff eliminate Steve Austin as Co-GM, asked that the match be cancelled. Trish approached Jericho and told him that they could be "really good friends." On the February 9 edition of Raw, Jericho teamed with Trish to take on Matt Hardy and Molly Holly. Jericho and Trish won with help from Christian. It seemed as if Christian had finally come to accept Jericho's affections for Trish.

Jericho would be out of action due to a knee injury for the next couple of weeks. Eric Bischoff scheduled a match between Christian and Trish Stratus for RAW on February 23. Backstage Christian told Trish that he would lie down for her and allow her to pin him. However, once in the ring, Christian delivered a clothesline to Trish and applied Jericho's Walls of Jericho submission onto her. She was taken out of action for several weeks and Christian gloated over his actions.

Jericho returned furious and attacked Christian on March 1. A match was scheduled for WrestleMania XX on March 14. The match saw Trish double-cross Jericho in favor of Christian.

The following night on RAW, Stratus revealed on how she had never forgiven Jericho for the Canadian dollar bet, how her feelings of sadness and hurt ate away at her for months as she plotted her ultimate revenge. The feud would continue through the spring and into the summer with Tyson Tomko eventually joining Trish and Christian and would ultimately end at Bad Blood on June 14, 2004 with Jericho defeating Tomko.

Chris Jericho - WWE Championship contender

Jericho's feud with Christian began again on August 30 when Christian made his return to RAW. On September 12, Jericho defeated Christian in a ladder match for the vacant Intercontinental Championship. Jericho lost the title at Taboo Tuesday to Shelton Benjamin and lost a rematch with Benjamin the next week. Jericho displayed his approval of the younger Benjamin following the rematch.

At WrestleMania 21, Jericho participated in the first-ever "Money in the Bank" ladder match, which also Shelton Benjamin, Chris Benoit, Kane, Christian and Edge. Edge came out the victor.

That summer, Jericho turned heel once more by turning on WWE champion John Cena. On August 21, Jericho lost to Cena at SummerSlam. The next night on Raw, Jericho faced Cena in a "You're fired" match, and after losing, Eric Bischoff "fired" a pleading Jericho, who was carried out of the arena by security.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "World Wrestling Entertainment", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki